Ary's Island
by Queen of the Dragons
Summary: Ary is stranded on an island with a group of children. Will they find a way to survive?Chapter 12 now up! What will happen to the fire?
1. Island Rules and Regulations

Ary's Island  
This is Ary's Island, by name and by government. In essence, I suppose that you could call my island's government a theocratic democracy. What caused it to end up that way is that while everybody else was arguing, I stood up, raised my voice, and said "I'm the High Priestess, so therefore I rule." Not one of the 31 people disputed my claim, and this may have had something to do with the fact that we were all pagan. I created what is now called the Island Council. Each of the eight people on the council were hand selected by me the second day on the island. All decisions were to be deferred to the Council unless if it was a major thing, and then it would come to me. Also, if the Island Council was divided 50/50 over an issue, it was agreed that I would cast the deciding vote. As a result, I ended up dividing the people into small units.  
First in priority were the food units. There are a total of five units that are gathering food for what is now a village. The foragers are in three groups of three, for a total of nine, and the hunters are in two groups of four. Next came shelter, another necessity. I delegated one group of three to build meager huts for everyone to sleep in during unfavorable conditions. There was also a group of four that was to build a temple for us to perform the Rites in on the festival days. The remaining seven people were put in a group and take turns patrolling the camp, two at a time, to ward off any animals drawn by whatever scents the village gives off. Each of these units had one person chosen from among them to serve on the Island Council. This was done so that each unit could feel as though they had at least some say in what went on in the village.  
The Island's rules or laws, as we call them, follow some of my Book Society's rules. Number one is that you should try to learn as much as possible about your surroundings before attempting anything that might have severe consequences. Second is that you cannot blind, murder, or do anything to physically maim another person - in essence, an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, a hand for a hand, and a life for a life. It is harsh, I know, but it works wonderfully. For instance, if one is caught stealing anything, that hand is removed and the transgressor is forced to put somewhere where they will look at it every day so that they cannot forget their crime. If a person unintentionally kills another person, the killer is sent into exile on pain of pain. Also, if one profanes or desecrates another's altar or the Temple, that transgressor is also sent into exile on pain of pain. If someone sets fire to another's house, the first person is burnt at a stake. Any minor transgressions are, of course, handled by the Island Council, who act like a criminal court of law for the whole Island.  
On any of the festival days, everyone ceases their work and comes into the Temple to perform or watch the Rites done. If they cannot make it for some reason, then they perform the solitary's Rites in their own homes with their own altar. 


	2. Finding Others

I walked along the beach, looking for signs of other people. Suddenly, another kid and I slammed into each other and fell. He got up and moved towards me.  
"Hi. I'm Celebrinor, Seal for short," he said.  
"Mreow. I'm Ary. Have you seen anyone else?"  
"No. You're the first since I started moving."  
"Let's stick together - it's a lot safer."  
"Good idea. You lead."  
A few hours later, we found a large tidal pool and took a breather. While swimming, I found a large conch shell. Holding it up to the light, I could see that it was flawless.  
"You know, those things make a bloody ruckus when you blow into them," Celebrinor told me.  
"How?" I asked.  
"Simple. Blow into it. But use your gut, not your chest." I did as he said. The noise that it created was enormously loud. You could probably hear it for miles. I continued blowing, so as to bring the other members of our group to me. We waited until it seemed as though everyone was there before starting.  
Celebrinor and I went around asking questions of the members about either ideas about the island or if there was anyone else. By the time we finished, the number of people in the cove was roughly thirty. Everyone seemed to agree that we needed a leader, due to the absence of any adults. Celebrinor and I spoke with each other about the results of our census, while the rest of the group broke into an excited river of talk. Blowing on the conch shell for quiet, I proceeded with our plan. "OK, everyone. Listen up, and listen good, 'cause this'll only happen once," I declared. "As far as a leader of this island, we need to figure that one out. All in favor of following a theocracy, raise your hands and Celebrinor here will tally them up." About twenty people raised their hands, and since majority rules, the island became a theocracy. "Now, who here's an official priest or priestess," I asked. About five of the twenty raised their hands in assent. "Great. Since I was the High Priestess of my order, and am the only High Priestess here, I rule." No one contested my untrue claim, which surprised me because surely someone should have found fault with that. Celebrinor tugged on my shirt sleeve. "Ary, if we're going to live on this island, shelter is our first priority." "You're right, but right now we need food more than anything." I turned to face those who were now my people and said "How many of you know how to hunt or forage?" Seventeen people raised their hands. "Perfect," I said. "Now, how many can forage for food?" Nine of the seventeen said that they could. I put them into three groups of three and then sent them off. "The remaining eight of you will hunt. Break into two groups of four and get going." 


	3. Getting Started

The hunting units finally returned a few hours later. I blew the conch to let everyone know that the meeting was starting, and then stood up. The first that I did was to ask what the hunters found. The first group found nothing, but the second said that they had found some pigs which they had been unable to kill. I next asked the three groups of foragers what they had managed to scavenge. The first group, Altariel's group, reported that they may have found some edible berries, but not much else. The other groups had found much of the same.  
Celebrinor pulled me aside for a moment or two. "Ary, do think that we shall be rescued? Ever?"  
"I'm fairly certain, but I think that to enhance our chances we ought to light some sort of fire on that mountain top over there. You know, the flat one." I replied.  
"Good idea. Do you mind if I hold the conch? It would be a good way to show who's supposed to be speaking."  
"Go ahead."  
Celebrinor stood up with conch and started to lay out our idea. Everyone's heads were nodding while he talked, and I began to see the advantages to having him as my second-in-command. Suddenly, the whole group started shouting "Fire! Fire!" and raced off to the flat mountain. I looked after them with disgust at their childish behavior and trudged after them. By the time I had gotten there, they had amassed a rather large pile of dry wood and leaves - burnable things. Celebrinor started looking around for something to start the fire with. Noticing his searching gaze, I asked around for matches. No one had matches, but one of the older kids - a teen perhaps - had a lighter on him.  
Taking the teen's lighter, I sparked it and set one of the sticks in the pile on fire. Eventually, the whole pile was brightly burning, but not creating enough smoke to be seen by passing ships. One of the younger children came up and tugged at my shirt.  
"High Priestess, there's a fire in the woods to left," the child said.  
"Oh, dear. Is it smoking?"  
"Yes."  
"Then just forget about it. The smoke is a good thing."  
I retrieved the conch shell from Celebrinor and blew hard. The whole rim - meaning group or gathering in Elven - of people stopped whatever it was that they had been doing and looked up at me.  
"Folks, we've got a smoky fire burning in the parts of the forest to my left over there. Just ignore it, 'cause it's our signal fire. Next, we need anyone who can build a sort of crude hut." To my regret, only three of the 30 other people raised their hands.  
"Great," I said, dripping with sarcasm. "You three are now one unit. Your mission is to build one meager hut for every two people here, and a slightly larger one for myself. Hop to it!"  
"Yes'm," they all replied.  
I turned to Celebrinor. "Hey, Seal."  
"Yeah."  
"Do ya think that we ought to head back down to the cove and take another head count?"  
"Sure. Why not. Go ahead, I don't really care. I mean, it's all up to you anyway, isn't it?" He said unhappily.  
"Thanks for helping out, Seal. I wouldn't have gotten this far without you."  
Wearily, all thirty-one of us walked back down to the cove to watch the hut building and to take a head count. Everyone was there, so I let them know that it was OK to have rest if they wanted. Within minutes, nearly everyone was either asleep or on their backs, resting peacefully. 


	4. Trouble

It was morning. I could tell because the sun was shining directly into my eyes, waking me from a somewhat fitful sleep. As I glanced around, I saw a few others waking up as well. Some of the more resourceful folks had snagged a few of the large leaves and used them as blankets. I walked towards the mountain, to see how many huts had been built.  
"Only two!" I muttered to myself. "Those three Builders had better be up soon, or I'm gonna give them a real scolding!"  
Some of the hunters ran up behind me. As I whirled around to stop them before they ran into me, I noticed that the fire had started to really smoke - a big, thick charcoal gray smoke. 'Good,' I thought, 'Now maybe someone will see it and drop off some supplies.' I was thinking thoughts like that because, unlike many of the other people on the island, I did not want to leave. I like it here, and intend to live out the rest of my life on this island.  
The lead hunter, Jack - a.k.a Merridew - reported on what they found. "Priestess."  
"Ye-es. What?" I asked a bit snappishly.  
"I am here to report on the latest hunt."  
"You don't need permission for that, silly. Just report already."  
"OK. We went hunting to the south, and managed to kill a few pigs. Whew, boy, those things sure do put up a good fight."  
"Stop rambling and just get on with it. I don't have all day you know."  
". The pigs, or piglets actually, seem to have a thin amount of fur, and have a lot of fat - we don't quite know why though."  
"Maybe it's so that if they end up in the water they'll float - unlike you."  
"Very funny, I'm sure."  
"You know what, Merridew?"  
"What?"  
"You disgust me. Get out of my sight. Oh, and by the way, Dae will replace you as Hunt Leader. I deem you unfit for the amount of responsibility. Dismissed."  
I laughed to myself as Merridew walked off, a look of confusion on his face. Dae would make a much better Hunt Leader than that spoiled jerk. He probably wouldn't last the week.  
As the day progressed towards afternoon, four more huts had been built, and the hunters brought in enough food for a decent dinner. After dinner, I informed everyone that since we now had more that just one hut, our "village" would be needing a few guards.  
"Any volunteers?" I asked. No one raised their hands.  
"Fine. Be that way. I shall have to pick you myself then." I pointed to Merridew, a boy in a blue striped shirt called Fran, and another boy by the name of Sidd. "You three are on guard duty tonight. Go get some rest and I'll have another person wake you up in time for your jobs.  
When the "meeting" was over, I walked out of the village and into the northern woods. I had built myself a little hut there earlier in the morning, before everyone else had gotten up. The day before I had found this small area, shadowed with vines and big, broad, leaves. Realizing how private this place was, I laid out the groundwork for a hut. In the morning I constructed the hut, complete with a door and windows that faced east and west. This is to where I now retreat whenever I feel the need to be away from people - it is almost perfect to me. 


	5. A Rebellion is Started

Gradually, we all got used to the way that the days worked on this island of ours. I had informed everyone of the danger of the midday mirages, and warned them not to follow after them because of the chance of "uncertain death" - which is a lot worse than "certain death".  
The smaller children, now called "littluns", built sandcastles on the cove's beach. This was their place, and the older kids did not want to disrupt their frolicking. There was, however, an older kid that watched them at all times, to ensure their safety. "Daycare" duty was chosen randomly, at my whim. Everyone (except for me, of course) did it sooner or later.  
As I emerged from my hideaway, I notice a great deal of smoke coming from Fire Mountain. I blew the conch twice in rapid succession, the signal for an emergency meeting on Fire Mountain. I looked out towards the ocean's horizon, and noticed a ship. The conch is blown with one long blast and one short blast - a ship has been sighted. Everyone begins to run to Fire Mountain.  
"Oh, shit." I say to myself.  
"What's up?" Celebrinor asks as he approaches.  
"The sky, dummy."  
"No, really, what's the matter?"  
"Some idiot's gone on and let the fire go out." I told him.  
"D'arvit. Who was on duty?"  
"That ass, Merridew."  
"The -ing moron!! He really shouldn't be trusted with an important thing like the fire, Ary."  
"I know. Once everyone gets here I'll convey the bad news."  
I walked away, signaling that the conversation was over. Merridew suddenly runs up, glowing with pride and excitement.  
"We got one! We got one!" he exclaims.  
I ignore him and turn to address my rim of people.  
"Hey, you all, guess what happened today?" I ask, my tone saturated with sarcasm.  
"A ship?"  
"A plane?"  
"Someone died?"  
"What? What happened? Tell us, pleeeeease," everyone clamors.  
"A ship was sighted. However, because some stupid bimbo let the fire go out, the ship did not see our signal and turned away." As I said this, I could imagine Jack Merridew squirming with guilt at letting the fire go out.  
"Does anyone want to hazard a guess at who that bimbo is?  
"No? Well, that's what I'm about to tell you.  
"It was....Jack Merridew!" I say his name with disgust printed all over my face. "Jack, tonight I'm putting you on latrine duty. And you'll do it every night until I say that you can stop. Got it?"  
"Yes, priestess," he mumbles.  
"I can't hear what you said, Merridew. Say it so everyone here can hear."  
"Yes, High Priestess," he says.  
"Good." To the rim of people I say, "OK, peeps. This meeting's over. Go do whatever you're supposed to do. If catch anyone slacking off, they'll be on Latrine with Mr. Moron over there. 'night." 


	6. Jack is Banished

The next morning, when I awoke, I sat for a while, lost in thought. I think about all sorts of things: my home, my friends at home, holiday rituals, being on the island, my new powers as High Priestess, Celebrinor, Merridew's rebelliousness, and physics. Out of the blue, a thought comes into my head. 'No one is doing things the way that they are supposed to. A meeting ought to be called to remedy their lackluster approach to the jobs that they have been given. Also to address the ongoing problem of one Jack Merridew.'  
I exited my hut and started to walk along the cove, thinking all the while. I realized that I was being a total asshole. In realizing that, I resolved to change my attitude. 'I must be P.M.S.ing,' I thought. I continued to walk, and eventually came to the meeting place.  
The conch shell is sitting on my log – which is probably the sturdiest log there – and the other logs are arrayed around it. Some have moss on them, while others do not. Mine, however, does have moss, and I find that it makes a very nice seat cushion. Merridew, Dae, and the rest of the hunters sit off to my left, on a patch of springy grass. The littluns usually sit on my right, but sometimes sit on the platform directly across from me, trading spaces with the older kids.  
I blew the conch in the meeting sequence and sat down to await my rim's coming. Jack Merridew came first, leading Dae and the hunters.  
"What's this about?" I asked.  
"Nothin' much, priestess." Jack said with scorn. "We just think that you are an incompetent leader and that I should be the Chief of this group."  
Dae cried out in protest, "Hey! Speak for yourself, Merridew. I think that Ary's doing a great job as High Priestess." She paused for a moment. "You know what? You're an asshole Jack. I'm leaving and taking myloyals with me." As she stalked off, all but seven of the hunters went with her and sat on the logs to my right. Jack and his crew sat on the usual patch off grass. By this time, all thirty-one of us are present. Celebrinor came and stood by my side, then handed me the conch in a very formal fashion. I was a bit taken aback by this gesture at the time.  
Imperiously, I waved the conch shell to and fro. "Yo! People! Pay attention! I've got the conch. That means that I speak. There are a few things that I need to talk about this time around, and if we don't get through them I all, those who disrupt the meeting will face severe consequences. First, no one around here except for the hunters and the builders is doing anything productive. Second, no one seems to remember where the latrines are. If you need to go, ask Moron Merridew over here, since he's had a lot of experience in that area." At this, most everyone breaks into whirlwinds of laughter.  
Celebrinor looks at me and smiles. "Cute joke, Ary," he said.  
With that one look, he recalled me to the purpose of this meeting. "Third thing is that we were supposed to be collecting water in coconut halves for us to drink. What happened to those, you guys? Fourth –"  
Jack interrupts me, "Fourth is that we need food, and in order to do that, we need to hunt. And what do we need to hunt? Hunters! I say that we hunters should get to choose a leader, one more competent than this charlatan priestess that we've gotten stuck with. Who's with me?"  
At this point, I snatch the conch shell back. "No. Fourth is that the fire is key to our getting rescued. It has to stay lit. If it's not lit, then no one will know that we are here. That means that no one will come to get us off this godsforsaken island."  
I put the conch down, showing everyone that I am done speaking. Celebrinor picks it up, and begins to talk.  
"You lot are lazy. All you ever want to do is play and fool around. Ary's right. If we want to get rescued, then everyone needs to –" Merridew grabs the conch, and a small quarrel arises over whether or not Celebrinor had the conch.  
"Give. It. Back!" he cries.  
"No. You're a stupid head, Seal, did I ever tell you that? Of course I did, but you're just to stupid to remember it."  
I stand up and take the conch from Merridew. "Merridew, stop picking on him. Just because Seal happens to be smarter that you doesn't mean that you can pick on him. Anyway, he had the conch, and that gives him the right to say whatever he wants to say."  
"Yea? Well the conch was a stupid idea. We all know who really have important stuff to say – the hunters! Seal and the others never have anything of import to say. They're all a bunch of idiots."  
"Merridew," I say, "this is outrageous behavior. I motion that we expel you from this community, along with all who share your views." I turn to the rim of people. "All in favor of this, raise your hands." Nearly everyone did. Those who didn't, were sent off to a nearby sister island – one that was within swimming distance, but just far enough away that Jack and his cronies would not want to return to my island to create havoc. Without Jack, the meetings have been a lot more productive. 


	7. Island Council

One night, the pair of twins – Sam 'n' Eric or Samneric – who were not littluns yet not biguns, were watching the fire. According to their story, one of them, Eric, heard a noise, and dismissed it. Then, the noise was heard again. Sam says that Eric and him saw a "thing" drop down out of the sky, a set of wings setting it down. Freaked out, the two of them ran into the pre-village, trying to find Celebrinor – the one that the littluns looked to when troubled. Seal told me about what they saw, and I decided to call a meeting. A few days previous to this incident, many of the littluns had been talking about this "beastie" of theirs – most of us thought that they were just having nightmares. But after Samneric's incident, I was willing to call a hunt for it. We all assembled at the meeting site, which I had decided to call the Quetnor– "speaking place" in Elvish. Ever since Jack Merridew left, I've been taking a head count, to check on how many of my rim are with him at any given time. Twenty, including myself. 'Damn, I thought, 'more people have moved to Exile Island.' Taking the conch, I call the meeting to order. "Earlier today, Seal brought something very important to my attention. More people are leaving, saying that they don't like having a dictatorship. In retrospect, I can see that that's what I've been for the past few weeks. So I decided to add a little democracy to our government here. I will be creating an Island Council, with representatives from each of the main groups on the island." As I finished speaking, Seal took the conch. "Our High Priestess will need each of the groups to come up her when called. She and I will choose one person from each group to serve on the Island Council." To me he said, "Here's the conch, Ary. I think that we ought to start with the Hunters."  
"Good idea, Seal. You call them."  
"OK. We need Dae's group to please step down."  
As they walked down the ramp, Seal and I agreed to appoint Dae as their representative. Making a rather large show of deciding on the representative, we eventually turned around, walked a few paces away, and pretended to have an argument over who would be chosen. Going back to them, we told them that Dae would be their representative.  
"Next. We need Altariel's Foragers to come down."  
This time, we really didn't know who to choose. Altariel was a good group leader, but we were unsure of whether or not she would make a good Councilor, as we are calling the representatives.  
"We might just end up going with Altariel, Ary," Seal said.  
"Yeah, I guess so. Let's go tell her group."  
We informed her foragers, and called for the next group of Foragers. Group 2 was led by James Shoskopf. Tall, dark, handsome, and six foot three, he fit the Camp Louise un-definition of a Camp Airy boy. Being charismatic, we decided that he would be their Councilor.  
"Builders, step down," Seal called.  
The Builders' leader was known to the group as Jayzon, with emphasis on the "zon" part of her name. Her boyfriend, Zachariah, would be their Senator. For the time, that was all we needed, but we would later have more groups – which meant more Councilors.  
Tired, I dismissed everyone from the Quetnor and went to my now- finished hut in the village to sleep. Celebrinor had moved in with me, for "security reasons" he claims, but we both know the real reason why. 


	8. Jack's Return

A few days ago Jack returned from exile – unofficially. I was mad, but decided to give him one last chance to show that he wasn't a total failure. He was going to lead the hunt for the "beastie." Since no one ever saw it on our side of the island except at night, we figured that it came from the other side.  
As we walked down the beach to the rock pile on the other side that I had spotted a few days ago, Celebrinor and I talked about the signal fire and the littluns.  
"Ary," he said, "Why have you let the fire go out? I thought that it was key to our getting rescued."  
At last, the moment of truth had come. Over the weeks that we'd been on the island, I had come to hate lying to Celebrinor. "Seal, I couldn't care less about getting rescued. I like being on this island, especially the lack of adults." I paused for a minute or two to let this sink in. "Seal, whatever you do, please, please, don't tell the others about this. Promise me."  
To my immense surprise, he kissed me on the cheek and whispered "I promise." I stood there, stunned by this action. Coming out of shock, I noticed that the others were way ahead of me. I ran to catch up. When I got to them, Jack was talking.  
"I think we should just run in and kill it!" he proclaimed.  
"No, Jack. Doing that will just get one of us killed." I told him.  
"Yeah, like anyone here's worth anything?" he said sarcastically.  
"Actually, even half of one of us is worth more than you, Jack."  
"Dissed and dismissed." Everyone said to him."  
Seal told me that the chances of actually capturing the "beastie" were slim, so I called the hunt to an end and sent all of us back to the Quetnor. On the way back, we ran into a wild boar. Jack, with his spear ready, as always, managed to stick it on its snout. The boar loped off, squealing in pain.  
Back at the Quetnor, some of Jack's hunters were pantomiming a hunt that they had had. Robert was acting the part of the sow, and the others were the hunters. Jack joined in as soon as he saw them. They started chanting their cry, "Kill him, kill the pig. Stick it. Kill the pig. Kill him. Kill the pig." I was freaked out.  
Robert started to pretend to squeal like the pig when it was hurt. Suddenly, Jack started to poke at him with his spear, drawing blood.  
"Stop!!" I cried. "You're going to kill someone with these 'games' of yours."  
They all stopped what they were doing and began to look a bit guilty at the fact that they nearly killed one of their friends. Jack and his gang were becoming savages. 


	9. A Great Nation

The conch was blowing. Seal and I wondered who could be blowing the conch, and why. Whoever it was definitely did not know the coded sequences. Running to the Quetnor, Seal and I discussed possible suspects for the blowing.  
It was Jack. I had figured as much, since he was the only one who could possibly attempt to undermine my authority. Everyone was already there, and Jack was standing on my log. He talked for a long time, eventually repeating what he had said before I banished him. This time however, when he lost, he just got up and left, dropping the conch shell onto the ground. Not as many people followed him, which I considered to be a good sign.  
After the meeting, Simon came up to me.  
"What's up?" I asked.  
"Ary, I know about your views on rescue and stuff. But I just have to say this one thing."  
"What?"  
"Whatever happens, I just know that your village will become a great nation."  
"You're nutters, Simon."  
"No, I'm not kidding. I just think that your village will be a great nation." 


	10. Disturbances and Theft

Simon came running into the village.  
"High Priestess! There's a body on Fire Mountain!! Come quick!!" he cried.  
  
I groggily awoke, dreading the coming day. Beside my bed, Celebrinor was already up and almost out the doorway – there was no door. I got up quickly, not willing to let him beat me out to Simon. I snagged the conch on my way out.  
  
"What did you say, Simon?" I asked.  
  
"There's a dead body on Fire Mountain."  
  
"Good for you, Simon. That's not important. Bug off."  
  
Simon left, looking dejected. As I watched him exit the village, I saw that two more huts had been put up over the last few days. 'Good,' I thought.  
  
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Jack walked along the beach towards Castle Rock. His people followed him, walking in a somewhat straight line. Jack may have been thinking about the large pile of rocks, surrounded by trees, with a hole in the side facing the island. It was this that was called Castle Rock. Inside this 'castle' of his, Jack had built up a small pile of wood for a fire, and also an area to go piss in. Jack wanted to do something to draw my people away from my leadership.  
  
******************************************************  
  
Lately, I had been hearing some rumors about Jack holding a great big feast, and was inviting all who would come. Knowing the things that I do, I decided not to forbid my people from going, because by doing so they would just want to go even more. An idea hit me (not literally). 'What if,' I thought, 'I held a party of my own, bigger and better than Jack's. ... No, that won't work. They will still go to Jack's party, whether or not I've got something better.' I resolved to go to his party and see what happened.  
  
When Seal and I got to the party, Jack had already brought in some game and cooked it over his fire. We were each given a piece of pork to eat. (At home, I would never have been able to do this, mostly because my parents kept kosher – and pork is definitely not kosher.) I ate it. When everyone was done, Jack stood up.  
  
"Let's do the dance," he said.  
  
"What's the dance?" I asked Seal.  
  
"It's that "Kill the pig. Cut his throat" thing," he told me.  
  
"Oh."  
  
Jack and his pals formed a ring, with Robert playing the part of the pig again. After a while though, he joined the ring. Now they chanted around an empty circle, jabbing at an imaginary pig from time to time. Suddenly, Simon stumbled into the circle.  
  
"It's the beast," someone cried.  
  
Their chant rose is fervor and pitch. "Kill the beast. Cut his throat. Kill the beast. Cut his throat." They began to jab wildly at the "beast". Running this way and that, Simon tried to escape the chanting ring of savages. They hemmed him in, poking at him with their sharpened spears. Simon broke the circle, and ran for the forest.  
  
Simon reached the cove. Sitting on the sand he put his head in between his knees. The dead body floated out to sea with the tide.  
  
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I slept. And while I slept, I dreamed. At first the dreams were innocent, about stupid things like getting grounded or seeing an old enemy. But then they got worse. I started dreaming about the island, about what had happened since we got here.  
  
*fade out*  
  
I sat on a log at the party watching the dance. Simon broke through the tree line and into the revolving circle of savages. Their chant rose in pitch and fervor. They began to stab at Simon, making contact most of the time. Frightened and enraged, Simon wildly tried to escape the circle. Then, fatally wounded, Simon broke the circle and ran off. The next morning, I went down to the beach. I saw a bunch of shells, and a pair of glasses that could only be Simon's. They had killed him.  
  
*fade in*  
  
I woke suddenly, trying to shake the dream out of my head. No matter how hard I try, I still cannot get that image out of my head. The others can't either, and we have all become unusually quiet.  
  
******************************************************  
  
That night, we moved the fire down into the center of our village. Most people had become too scared of the night to want to guard the fire on Fire Mountain. I set two boys to guard it – Ben and Sam. They obviously weren't doing a good job, because Jack and two of his hunters managed to steal most of our fire, and they also took some kid's glasses called Piggy. Piggy was a bigun, and one of the more sensible, but I couldn't have cared less about his glasses. What I did care about, however, was the fire. 


	11. This Means War

We marched down the beach, aiming straight for Jack's "castle." The first thing that we noticed were the guards that he had posted on the "rampart." They walked stiff-legged, as if they had super-glued a steel plate to the backs of their legs. Every once in awhile, one of them would turn on his heel – only the males were allowed to play at being a guard – and march stiff-legged in the other direction.  
"I want my glasses back," Piggy whined.  
"Shut up," one of the other kids told him. It was probably Ben or Sam, and they would pay for it later.  
Seal and I walked side by side; leading our people with dignity and grace as we rapidly approached the "castle." Soon, as per my expectations, Jack walked out with two bodyguards. I sniggered at their pathetic weapons.  
"Ary, you shouldn't do that, at least not now," Seal admonished me.  
"Whatever," was my reply.  
Jack had reached us. "So, Ary," he said with a sneer, "how is your "village" coming along. Need anything? We've got fire – if you're willing to pay for it."  
"You know very well that we don't have any money on my island, Jack. Besides, why ever in the world would we want to trade with you."  
"Because we have your fire."  
"I don't give a shit. We have a cigarette lighter. Without it, you won't have a fire in a few days."  
"Bugger off." Seal gasped at Merridew's expletive language.  
"C'mon, Seal. Let's go somewhere where the air isn't being polluted by that piece of garbage," I said in a stage whisper.  
"I heard that," stated Merridew.  
We turned our backs on him and began to walk away. As we did so, one of our people gave a shout and pointed at something behind us. We performed an about-face, and saw a giant boulder heading for us. Seal and I dived for a clump of bushes out of its path, motioning for the others to do the same. Unfortunately, Piggy, who is bat-blind without his glasses, did not see the rock. It barreled into him, crushing his body beneath it. When the boulder had moved on, bulldozing a path, we looked to see if anyone had been hurt. That's when we saw Piggy's body. It was mangled beyond recognition, and looked like a pancake – just like in the cartoons. Before we could say the funeral rites for him, two of Jack's boys grabbed the body and threw it over the edge of a nearby cliff.  
I turned to Jack. "This is war, you know," I told him calmly.  
He walked away without saying a word. 


	12. Missing

Our village was exactly the way that we had left it when we arrived at dusk later that same day. I set the cooks preparing dinner, and sent out hunters for fresh meat. Seal and I sat on a masterfully carved bench outside what the villagers considered to be "our" hut. Although I do not know what Seal was thinking about (probably what _all_ men think about 24/7…), I personally was going over the plans for the village's Temple in my head. It was going to be the largest and most majestic building on the entire Island.

"Ary, the cooks wish to know if you will be dining with us tonight," Seal told me.

"Yeah, why not? Tell them that I will be doing so."

"Then they ask that you go and receive your portion first, so that the others may do so as well."

"I'm coming, I'm coming." I ran with dignity (trust me – its very hard) to the center of the village, which where all fires are built. As I collected my portion of the dinner, the two blonde twins Ben and Sam, came up to me.

"Hey, sis."

"Bug off." I told them.

"We found Piggy's glasses."

"Good for you."

"…"

"BUG OFF!" They ran, not wanting to be near me in my current mood. Since they were my brothers, they knew very well that I liked to take out my negative emotions on them. (haha …sucks for them!)

)O(

When the village awoke the next morning, I had Seal blow the conch, effectively announcing a village meeting at the center of the village.Upon arrival, I had everyone report to their council member, who then came to me to say that everyone was there.

"Uh, HP?" the Sentry Councilor approached me.

"Yes?"

"Two of my day sentries are missing. They're not anywhere near the village, nor are they in their assigned bunk. I don't know where to look for them."

"Which two?" I had a pretty good idea, though. (Probably either my brothers or one of their friends – don't ask how they got onto a Pagan flight. [probably snuck into the baggage compartment.])

"The Twins."

"Oh. Send out a search party to sweep the entire island."

"Yes'm." I then went on to dicuss our plan of attack on Jack, selecting the leader of each _rimon_ – each of which contained about 9 warriors. Each _rimon_ leader were to report to me later to discuss the details of the various sections.


End file.
